The Influence Of Queen Isabella I: The Spanish Inquisition

Queen Isabella I, together with her husband King Ferdinand II, and their religious advisor, Tomas de Torquemada, instituted and spearheaded the Spanish Inquisition, the expulsion of Jews and Muslims from Spain, as well as the government-sanctioned persecution of Muslims (Edwards, 173) . In contrast to the Golden Age of Spain, centuries of progress and religious tolerance under Muslim rule, Queen Isabella’s reign over Spain from 1474 to 1504 was characterized by persecution of non-Catholics and the imposition of Catholicism on all of Spain’s inhabitants. The Reconquista was an ongoing and lengthy series of battles that lasted hundreds of years. Ultimately, Catholics succeeded in conquering all of Spain. The two largest non-Catholic groups in

Spain, the Muslims and the Jews, were both targeted for forced conversions, expulsion, and discrimination. While both Muslims and Jews experienced expulsions, forced conversions, and discrimination, their treatment differed because of their religious beliefs, ethnic backgrounds, and previous political actions.
The Spanish Inquisition was a way to inquire about and oversee the sincerity of recently converted Catholics and safeguard the best nature of Catholic religious practice.

When the concept of an Inquisition was proposed, Queen Isabella was not interested in pursuing it. Ferdinand, however, supported the idea of an Inquisition because he saw in it the potential to tremendously increase his wealth and land ownership (Altabé, 729). King Ferdinand was successful in convincing Queen Isabella to support instituting the Inquisition (Liss, 29). Queen Isabella was not known to turn down an opportunity for more wealth, as she was greedy and power hungry. In addition to this desire for financial gain, Queen Isabella’s opinions were shaped by her so called religious advisor Tomas de

Torquemada.
Torquemada promoted all of his beliefs on to an easily influenced Queen Isabella; she wanted to be seen as a devout Catholic so she heeded his instructions (Edwards, 29) Queen Isabella believed that the Inquisition would result in a religiously pure country as well as create for the monarchy immense power. By forcing all Spanish citizens to become Catholics, the non-Catholic population not only lost its political power but also its cultural and religious identity (Liss, 28). Queen Isabella selected Torquemada to become the first Great Inquisitor. The role of the Great Inquisitor was to monitor religious practice as well as torment and persecute those suspected of non-Catholic practice.
The Spanish Inquisition consisted of auto-de-fés, forced conversions, and murderous chases. The Jewish population in Spain before the Spanish Inquisition was depleted by approximately 40,000 to 100,000 (Perez, 17) . Families were driven out of their homes, lost all their property, and were then either killed or forced to leave. When Jewish families escaped from Spain, they took little to no belonging with them. Many Jewish families fled to Turkey and were taken in with open arms. Yet, most Jewish families that left Spain to seek freedom went to countries that did not treat them with respect and the families had to live in fear (Spiro).
During the Spanish Inquisition, auto-de-fés were commonplace. Auto-de-fé means act of faith in Spanish. They were gatherings of citizens where groups of people who were suspected of non-Catholic practice were brought together to be burned alive. The groups of chosen people were separated into different groups: those who wanted to be forgiven and those who did not want to be forgiven by the Catholic God. These spectacles happened regularly in different towns to target Jews and those who were not trusted ("Modern Jewish History: Auto De Fe"). It could be that Muslims were not targeted as much for auto-de-fés because most had already fled Spain to find a new, safer home.
The Edict of Expulsion, also called the Alhambra Decree, was issued in April of 1492 by Queen Isabella I and King Ferdinand.

It “prohibit[ed] all interactions” between Jews and Christians, and it “banish[ed]” Jews from Spain; Jews were required to flee Spain (Juan de Coloma). However, Jews who converted to Catholicism were permitted to remain in Spain. The primary goal of this edict was to keep the Jews who had converted to Catholicism faithful to their new religion. Catholics were suspicious of the authenticity of Jewish conversions. By mandatory expulsion as the punishment for practicing Judaism, the ruling Catholics greatly influenced the elimination Jewish practice and fostered more authentic conversions.

The Muslims, also called Moors, arrived in centuries earlier and gained full power in 711 CE (Altabé, 728). They ruled over the Iberian Peninsula and remained in power for many centuries. With a Muslim rule, an era of acceptance and growth was born. A Golden Age began and new ideas blossomed in a diverse population of Jews, Muslims, and Catholics. Jews and Muslims worked together and thought up many innovative ideas. Likewise, everyone was free to practice their own religion (Altabé, 728-729). Muslim rule in Spain was the complete antithesis of the Catholic rule of

Spain.
The Reconquista, the Catholic reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula, took place over hundreds of years. When Catholics conquered Muslim Kingdoms at the start of the Reconquista, many surrendering Muslim communities were able to negotiate freedom of religion into their agreements. However, under Queen Isabella, this practice ceased. Muslims were forced to convert to Catholicism or to fall exile. With the capture of Granada in 1492, the reconquest was completed and all of Spain was ruled by its Catholic monarchy (Edwards, 48). The fall of Granada, the last remaining Muslim kingdom falling to Catholic armies, resulted in Catholics ruling all of Spain. When Granada was captured by the Catholics, Muslims were offered exile or baptism. Many Muslims converted to Catholicism. Some privately practiced Islam. These moriscos, “Moorish”, were Muslims who became baptized Catholics. Throughout the early sixteenth century, Muslims in Spain were given the ‘baptize or leave’ choice. The numbers of moriscos grew. The moriscos continued to speak Arabic, dress in their traditional garb, and observe their cultural traditions. This changed with the fall of Granada. Moriscos were forbidden to speak their language, practice any of their customs, or wear traditional clothing. This led to a revolt by the moriscos who ultimately lost this war. The Catholic rulers punished moriscos by dispersing them throughout Spain. In 1609, an Edict of Expulsion was issued by King Philip III which expelled any remaining moriscos from Spain (Jónsson, 197).
Some Jews converted to Catholicism, but the majority of the Spanish Jews were killed. Approximately 200,000 Jews became Catholics during the era of the Spanish Inquisition (Pérez, 17). Even after conversion, these conversos, were suspect and watched for any sign of Jewish practice. Converso was the derogatory term used to belittle and label Jewish converts to Catholicism. Although many Jews did convert to save themselves from death, there were still some honest conversions. Nevertheless, all Jews who converted to Catholicism were distrusted and not treated as true Catholics. Also, some conversos who were full Catholic practicers were killed in auto-de-fés because they were believed to have committed unlawful Jewish practices.
Like the Muslims, Jews were targeted because doing so would increase the power of the Catholic monarchy and Catholic populace. Before the Spanish Inquisition, Jews were merchants, craftsmen, and tax collectors (Altabé, 728). The Jewish community was successful and wealthy. Also, Jews were targeted for being Jews and practicing a non-Catholic religion. Jews were despised by the Catholic Spanish community because they were seen as different, a group of suspicious others. The Spanish Inquisition harmed Jews and their families and often resulted in their death. Any group that was not Catholic was victimized. Even so, Jews were the most tormented group during the Spanish Inquisition as they were hated purely because of their religion and culture, not their past actions.